ai4bharat/Pralekha huggingface dataset:
Ministry of Defence
Raksha Mantri inaugurates Centre of Excellence in Land Survey in National Institute of Defence Estates Management
As a part of the Capacity Building initiative of the Government of India, National Institute of Defence Estates Management one of the premier Central Training Institutes has established a Centre of Excellence in Land Survey. This centre was inaugurated on 16th December 2021 by the Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh.
Defence Estates Organisation constantly undertakes land surveys as a part of their domain specialization and thereby developed expertise in this area of activity. The Centre of Excellence will cater to the training needs of Government officers and technical personnel who are involved in surveys exclusively in emerging survey technologies like Drone surveys and Satellite imagery-based surveys. Nowadays real-time monitoring systems based on digital photogrammetric techniques, high-resolution satellite imagery, airborne and terrestrial laser scanner devices can give a set of powerful tools for geometric surveying and modelling. The Centre of Excellence is focused on such new techniques of the survey. The expertise developed in this regard will be shared with other Central and State Government Departments including autonomous bodies who are willing to sponsor participants to the basis and specialized courses to be conducted at the Centre of Excellence. The Centre of Excellence obtains services from premier institutions like NRSC, NIGST, SPA Delhi and experts from the survey industry as resource faculty and aims to develop inhouse capacities very soon.
Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh, speaking on the occasion, reiterated the need for undertaking a land survey on a continuous basis and felicitated the Defence Estates Department for the path-breaking initiative of setting up the Centre of Excellence Land Survey and also emphasised the need for opening up the facility to all other Government Department also.
Shri Ajay Kumar Sharma, DGDE while speaking on the occasion informed that the Centre of Excellence at NIDEM is the culmination of one of the thought processes enunciated by Dr. Ajay Kumar, the Defence Secretary as part of DGDE’s Capacity Building process and all steps will be taken to bring the Centre of Excellence on the national arena to become a premier Training Centre for Survey in latest techniques.
Ministry of Commerce & Industry
GeM and Punjab Government sign MoU for Setting up Project Management Unit
Government e Marketplace  under the Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce & Industry and Government of Punjab, signed MoU to set up a GeM Organizational Transformation Team  Project Management Unit  in the state. The MoU was signed by Additional CEO,GeM, S. Suresh Kumar, and Director Industries, Government of Punjab, C. Sibinat Chandigarh on 10th September 2019.
GeM, the national public procurement portal launched in August 2016 has transformed the public procurement landscape in the country with transparency, efficiency and inclusion. It has facilitated procurement worth over Rs. 34,000 crore of goods & services by various Government Departments, Organisations and PSUs.
To further strengthen and enable Government departments towards a market based procurement, Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance, Government of India hasadvised Ministries and Departments of Central and State Governments to consider services of GOTT on an outcome based self-sustenance model. GOTT will assist the buyer agency to redesign the procurement processes and enhance competenciesto derive maximum benefit from the online marketplace.
Government of Punjab is the first State which will establish GOTT PMU for effectively utilising this transformational initiative towards inclusive, efficient and transparent procurement. Among the CPSUs, SAIL has already signed MoU for setting up of PMU. Many other states and CPSUs are in the process of setting up GOTT PMUs.
It is projected that through the initiatives of GOTT PMU, Government of Punjab will be able to transact around Rs 1700 crore in terms of annual Gross Merchandize Value  on GeM platform in the first year and over Rs 3000 crore per annum, over a period of time.
Vice President's Secretariat
Vice President greets the nation on the eve of Lohri, Makar Sankranti, Bihu, Pongal and other festivals
Vice President Shri Jagdeep Dhankhar has greeted fellow citizens on the eve of Lohri, Makar Sankranti, Magha Bihu, Pongal, Uttarayan, Pausha Parbon and other festivals. Following is the full text of his message-
“I extend my warm greetings and best wishes to all on the auspicious occasion of Lohri, Makar Sankranti, Magha Bihu, Pongal, Uttarayan and Pausha Parbon. As the Sun embarks on its northward journey in Uttarayan, we celebrate our harvest season across the country with gaiety, joy and deep gratitude for nature’s bounty.
Known by different names across various parts of India, these festivals symbolise the essential unity underlying our rich cultural diversity.
I wish that this festive season brings prosperity, peace and happiness to all our citizens, and further strengthens the bonds of harmony and fraternity that connect us.”
Following is the Hindi version of his message-
“लोहड़ी, मकर संक्रांति, माघ बिहू, पोंगल, उत्तरायण और पौष परबोन के पावन अवसर पर सभी देशवासियों को हार्दिक शुभकामनाएं देता हूँ। सूर्य जब उत्तरायण होते हैं, देश भर में यह फसलों की वृद्धि और पकने का अवसर होता है। हम इसे हर्षोल्लास के साथ मनाते हैं और इस समृद्धि के लिए प्रकृति की असीम अनुकम्पा के लिए अपनी कृतज्ञता व्यक्त करते हैं।
भारत के अलग-अलग क्षेत्रों में विभिन्न नामों से जाने जाने वाले ये सभी पर्व, भारत की समृद्ध सांस्कृतिक विविधता में निहित एकता के सूत्र को दर्शाते हैं।
ये पर्व हमारे देश के नागरिकों के जीवन में खुशहाली, शांति और ऐश्वर्य लाएं, उस सौहार्द और बंधुत्व को मजबूत करें जो हमें परस्पर जोड़े रखता है।”
Ministry of Defence
75 years of Independence - Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav
Unique initiative of Gallantry Awards portal & NCC to maintain and honour the statues of War Heroes of India
To mark the 75th year of Independence, Gallantry Awards Portal and National Cadet Corps  have jointly initiated a unique scheme to celebrate and pay tribute to the gallants of the Armed Forces and others who made the supreme sacrifice in the service of the nation. Under the initiative, statues of the brave hearts are adopted for cleaning & upkeep and cadets spread awareness among the people about the contribution and leadership traits of the War Heroes & other national personalities through interactive lectures, poetry recital, nukkad natak/dance etc.
As on date, NCC has adopted 46 statues of Gallantry award winners – 10 Param Vir Chakra, 6 Ashoka Chakra, 11 Mahavir Chakra, four Kirti Chakra, 12 Vir Chakra and three Shaurya Chakra.
To enable greater reach of this noble activity of NCC, Gallantry Awards Portal has decided to live webcast these events, organised by NCC, every week. The portal  also enables those, who are not physically present at the event, to pay their tributes virtually. The first such event was webcast live on July 7, 2021 on trial basis. The next event is scheduled to take place at 11 AM on July 16, 2021 at Statue Junction, Tirupunithara at Kochi, Kerala, where the statue of Lt Col Ramakrishnan Vishwanathan, Vir Chakra, will be paid tribute by NCC. Lt Col Ramakrishnan Vishwanathan was the Second-in-Command of 18 GRENADIERS who had conducted operations on and around Tololing mountain in Drass sector, Kargil during Operation Vijay. He was posthumously awarded the Vir Chakra for his actions during the Kargil war.
As part of the initiative, the local unit of NCC organises cleaning and information dissemination events on a weekly basis in the precincts of an adopted statue. NCC cadets of one or more educational institutions are tasked with the responsibility to carry out the activities. The event helps create awareness among the people about the deeds of the brave hearts of the country. It also aims to motivate people to participate in the Swachh Bharat campaign propagated by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi to realise the ideals of Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi.
The initiative spreads the message of importance of ‘Swachhta’ in day-to-day lives and inspiring the local population to take care of local monuments and heritage. It further contributes towards harnessing the energy of the youth towards social causes and instilling a sense of patriotism in them. This initiative of NCC has got encouragement from all quarters.
Log on to the Gallantry Awards portal for information on future events. People can also suggest statues requiring adoption by a local NCC unit. The suggestions can be sent to the portal.
ABB/Nampi/KA/DK/Savvy
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Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
Daily Recoveries outnumbering daily New Cases ensures steady decline in the Active Caseload
Active Caseload falls below 4.5% of the Total Cases
India has reported more daily recoveries than the daily new cases during the past 24 hours. While 35,551 persons were found to be infected with COVID in India, during the same period, India has registered 40,726 new recoveries. It has led to a net decline of 5,701 cases from the total Active Caseload in the last 24 hours.
The new recoveries continue to overtake the daily new cases continuously since the past 6 days.
India’s active caseload has fallen under the 4.5% mark today.
The trend of more daily recoveries than the daily cases has led to a continuous contraction of India’s Active Caseload. It has ensured that India’s present active caseload of 4,22,943 consists of just 4.44% of India’s Total Positive Cases.
New Recoveries outnumbering the daily New Cases has also improved the Recovery Rate to 94.11% today. The total recovered cases stand at 89,73,373. The gap between Recovered cases and Active cases is steadily increasing and presently stands at 85,50,430.
77.64% of the new recovered cases are contributed by ten States/UTs.
With 5,924 persons recovering from COVID, Kerala recorded maximum number of recoveries. Delhi registered another 5,329 daily recoveries while Maharashtra 3,796 new recoveries.
Ten States/UTs have contributed 75.5% of the new cases.
Kerala reported 6,316 cases in the last 24 hours. Delhi recorded 3,944 new cases while Maharashtra registered 3,350 new cases yesterday.
79.28% of the 526 case fatalities that have been reported in the past 24 hours are from Ten States/UTs.
21.10% of new fatalities reported are from Maharashtra which reported 111 deaths. Delhi also saw a fatality count of 82 while West Bengal reported 51 new deaths.
Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports
Government is making Fit India a people’s movement: Shri Anurag Thakur
Key Highlights:
- Ministry is actively spreading awareness about fitness through various activities and campaigns in association with various stake holders under the Fit India Movement
- Fit India age-appropriate fitness protocols for various age groups have also been introduced
This Ministry has been actively spreading awareness about fitness through various activities and campaigns in association with various stake holders under the Fit India Movement. Major activities initiated by this Ministry under the Fit India banner include online/offline activities in the categories of Plog Run, School Certification system, Youth Club Certification system, School Week celebrations, Cyclothon, Yoga Day celebration, Freedom Run, Active Day series during lockdown, Champion Talks, Dialogue series, Indigenous Games series, Fit India Thematic Campaigns, and PrabhatPheris. Further, Fit India age-appropriate fitness protocols for various age groups have also been introduced.
Since inception of the Fit India Movement, this Ministry has been actively spreading awareness about fitness showcasing the simple physical activities that have always been an integral part of our Indian culture. Corporates are being invited to participate in all the events/ activities organised under the Fit India Movement and their involvement has been quite encouraging in events like Fit India Freedom Run, Fit India Cyclothon, etc.
The role of the Central Government in making Fit India a people’s movement is that of a catalyst and no separate fund has been allocated for this programme.
This information was given by Minister of Youth Affairs & Sports Shri Anurag Thakur in a written reply in Lok Sabha today.
Cabinet
Cabinet approves Merger of Five Film Media Units through Rationalization of Infrastructure,Manpower and Other Resources
With more than 3000 films produced in a year, India is the largest film producer in the world with an industry led by the private sector. To fulfill the commitment to support the films sector, the Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, has approved to merge four of its film media units, namely Films Division, Directorate of Film. Festivals, National Film Archives of India, and Children's Film Society, India with the National Film Development Corporation  Ltd. by expanding the Memorandum of Articles of Association of NFDC, which will then carry out all the activities hitherto performed by them. The merger of Film Media Units under one corporation will lead to convergence of activities and resources and better coordination, thereby ensuring synergy and efficiency in achieving the mandate of each media unit.
Films Division, a subordinate office of M/o I&B, was established in 1948, primarily to produce documentaries and news magazines for publicity of Government programmes and cinematic record of Indian history.
Children's Film Society, India, an autonomous organisation, was founded in 1955 under the Societies Act with the specific objective of providing children and young people value-based entertainment through the medium of films.
National Film Archives of India, a subordinate office of M/o I&B, was established as a media unit in 1964 with the primary objective of acquiring and preserving Indian cinematic heritage.
Directorate of Film Festivals, as attached office of M/o I&B was set up in 1973 to promote Indian films and cultural exchange.
NFDC is a Central Public Sector Undertaking, incorporated in the year 1975 with the primary object of planning and promoting an organized, efficient and integrated development of the Indian Film Industry.
The Union Cabinet which approved the merger of these Media Units in its meeting, also approved the appointment of a Transaction Advisor and Legal Advisor to advise on the transfer of assets and employees and to oversee all aspects of operationalization of the merger.
While undertaking this exercise of convergence, interests of the employees of all the concerned Media Units will be fully taken care and no employee will be retrenched.
The umbrella organization, NFDC, consequent upon the merger of Film Media Units will be uniquely placed with regard to promotion, production & preservation of filmic content - all under one management. The vision of the new entity will be to ensure balanced and focused development of Indian cinema in all its genres-feature films, including films /content for the OTT platforms, children's content, animation, short films and documentaries.
The merger of Film Media Units under a single corporation will lead to synergy amongst the various activities with better and efficient utilization of misting infrastructure and manpower. This will lead to reduction in duplication of activities and direct savings to the exchequer.
Ministry of Agriculture &
Farmers Welfare
Sowing area coverage under Kharif crops shows good progress; Sowing area coverage of rice, pulses, coarse cereals and oilseeds more than last year
389.75 LMT wheat purchased by Food Corporation of India in Rabi Marketing Season 2020-21
The Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers Welfare, Government of India is taking several measures to facilitate the farmers and farming activities at field level during COVID 19 pandemic. There has been satisfactory progress of sowing area coverage under Kharif crops, the status of which is given as under:
Sowing Area Coverage of Kharif Crops:
Rice: About 220.24 lakh ha area coverage under rice as compared to 187.70 lakh ha. during the corresponding period of last year.
Pulses: About 99.71 lakh ha area coverage under pulses as compared to 79.30 lakh ha. during the corresponding period of last year.
Coarse Cereals: About 137.13 lakh ha area coverage under coarse cereals as compared to 120.30 lakh ha. during the corresponding period of last year.
Oilseeds: About 166.36 lakh ha area coverage under oilseeds as compared to 133.56 lakh ha. during the corresponding period of last year.
Sugarcane: About 51.54 lakh ha area coverage under sugarcane as compared to 51.02 lakh ha. during the corresponding period of last year.
Jute & Mesta: About 6.94 lakh ha area coverage under jute & mesta as compared to 6.84 lakh ha. during the corresponding period of last year.
Cotton: About 118.03 lakh ha area coverage under cotton as compared to 96.35 lakh ha. during the corresponding period of last year.
Central Water Commission  has reported that the live water storage in 123 reservoirs in different parts of the country is 155% of the corresponding period of the last year.
In Rabi Marketing Season  2020-21, a total of 420.90 Lakh MT wheat has arrived in FCI out of which 389.75 Lakh MT has been purchased.
Click here for more details
Ministry of Development of North-East Region
Promoting Tourism in North East India, Photography and Videography Contest Organized By MDoNER in Collaboration with MyGov India
The eight states of North East India are blessed with scenic natural beauty, salubrious weather, rich biodiversity, rare wild life, historical sites, distinct cultural and ethnic heritage and warm and welcoming people. The region offers unforgettable visits for tourists interested in wild life, religious, cultural and ethnic tourism, river cruises, golf and a host of others. There is also great scope for mountaineering, trekking and adventure tourism in the region. On the occasion of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, we are organizing 'North East India Photography and Videography Contest' with the aim to promote NER as a tourist destination as well as to showcase the culture, people, arts, food etc.
Union Minister for Culture, Tourism and Development of North Eastern Region , Government of India Shri G. Kishan Reddy launched ‘With Love From North East’ Campaign’ from his Social Media Channels.
- Theme of The Contest - North East India
- Activities- As a part of this contest, photo and video enthusiasts can enter into the following categories related to North East i.e. Culture, Cuisine, People, Historical monuments, Biodiversity, Fauna and Ecology.
Main Guidelines are:
- The Competition is open to all citizens of India only
- Duration of This Campaign: 20th December 2021 to 27th January 2022
- A participant may submit only up to 5 entries
- Photographs & Videos must be of high resolution
- Photos should be submitted in JPG/PNG & MP4 format
- Size of the photographs & videos should not exceed 10MB
- Language
- All entries must be submitted to the creative corner section of www.mygov.in
- Entries submitted through any other medium/ mode would not be considered for evaluation
- 3 winners will be selected & gain national recognition
- Candidates will be evaluated on the following criteria:
All the entries received by My Gov India would be assessed for award by the Selection Committee.
- Entries would be judged on the basis of elements of creativity, originality, composition, technical excellence, simplicity, artistic merit and visual impact and how well they communicate the theme of the scheme.
- The decision of the Selection Committee would be final and binding on all the contestants and no clarifications would be issued to any participants for any or their decisions.
- The disqualified entries shall not be used by MDoNER for any purpose and FCI shall have no intellectual rights over the same.
- Contest Closes: 27th January 2022
- Awards & Recognition - Top 3 Winners will be awarded with a holiday package in North East
For terms and Conditions, click on the link:
https://innovateindia.mygov.in/destination-north-east-photography-and-videography-contest/
Ministry of Road Transport & Highways
Expansion of Road Network Under Pradhan Mantri Gati Shakti Yojana
The Ministry is primarily responsible for development and maintenance of National Highways  in the country. MoRTH has undertaken development of 55 Port Connectivity Road projects of total length of 2,753 kms. Apart from these, the work of preparation of DPR has been taken up for 2 more streches. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs  inter-alia approved the proposal of Ministry of Commerce and Industry, in October 2021, for inclusion of National Highways  infrastructure projects of the Ministry in a length of 48,030 km as part of PM GatiShakti National Master Plan  for providing Multi-modal connectivity to various Economic Zones. These inter-alia include development of 2,047 km length of Port Connectivity Roads in the country .
The length of the corridor from Bhavnagar-Veraval – Gadu – Porbandar - Dwarka-Khambhaliya - Devariya and Dhrol - Bhadra-Patiya - Pipaliya is 583.90 Km. Out of which, three no. of projects having length of 46 Km from Bhavnagar to Sosiya-Alang Ship Reycling yard, Trapaj – Manar and RoB on Kandla Kutch Road is envisaged for development in the state of Gujarat.
The corridor shall connect important places and district such as Bhavnagar, Una, Gir-Somnath, Junagadh, Porbandar, Dwarka, Devbhumidwarka, Jamnagar & Morbi. The corridor will connect places of indutrial and major economic activities with ports in the region thereby facilitating cargo transportation and reducing transportation cost & time. In addition it will provide seamless connectivity to major tourism destinations and will give a boost to economic development in the region.
This information was given by the Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Shri Nitin Gadkari in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha.
Ministry of Agriculture &
Farmers Welfare
Objectives of National Food Security Mission
In order to enhance production and productivity of food crops, the Government is implementing a Centrally Sponsored Scheme of National Food Security Mission  in the country including Gujarat. The mission aims at increasing foodgrain/food crop production through area expansion in niche regions and productivity improvement.
The details of increase of productivity of major food grains in the state of Gujarat is as under:

|
|
Sl. No
|
|
Crops
|
|
2007-08
|
|
2020-21|
|
Change

|
|
1
|
|
Rice
|
|
1942
|
|
2454
|
|
512
|
|
2
|
|
Wheat
|
|
3013
|
|
3178
|
|
165
|
|
3
|
|
Total Pulses
|
|
843
|
|
1099
|
|
256
|
|
4
|
|
Total Foodgrains
|
|
1831
|
|
2094
|
|
2632nd Advance Estimates for 2020-21.
This information was given in a written reply by the Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Shri Narendra Singh Tomar in Lok Sabha today.